The Best Hummus. Ever.

Although delayed (better late than never), I have to tell everyone about a little discovery in NYC.

So I was wandering around the East Village taking photos and started walking down St. Marks Place. The street, I discovered to much delight, has quite a few treats for those with a little Israeli home sickness. But the jewel in the crown is, unequivocally, The Hummus Place.

Let me digress. I LOVE hummus. A day without Hummus is barely worth living. I practically live off the stuff in Israel, where it is yummy and cheap (500 grams for 10 shekel, you just can’t argue with that) and certified Kosher. But then here is the land of plenty, it has a funny texture, it’s expensive as hell, hard to find kosher unless you live in a Jew-hood, and to add insult to injury, no one can even pronounce it (get that Het going in your throat people, and say with me: CCHooo- Mooosse. Or Who-Moose, if you must, but never HUM (like hum a tune)-US ). All seemed lost for hummus in America.

But then I found The Hummus Place. Ambrosia. Run by Israeli native Nitzan, this adorably adorned little 28-seat hole-in-the-wall restaurant has, inexplicably, the best hummus I’ve ever had in my life.

ck, who happens to be Sephardic (did everyone know that?) agrees. It actually convinced him out of his notion that only an Arab can make really good hummus. (ed. note: The best Hummus in Israel is at this place called The Lebanese Restaurant in the Arab village of Abu Gosh in Jerusalem. This little joint on St. Mark’s place made even better hummus. And not only is it made by a Jew, it’s kosher too! — ck)

There’s only really three options on the menu (hummus, hummus or hummus – with ful, with chick peas and with tahini) but that with big fluffy pita and nana tea it is more than everything you need.

We also happened to meet some of the crew of the new Israeli film “Bruno’s in Love ” from the writer of Chochmat HaBaygela (the Wisdom of the Pretzel) . ck went over to speak to them (I wasn’t about to leave the hummus) and met said writer, Ilan Heitner, as well as the stars Ohad Knoller and Shimrit Lustig. It’s apparently your average boy-meets-girl, boy-follows-girl-to-America romantic comedy. ck reports that they were totally grooving on the hummus.